How do you buy and select your books?

[shadowkat]

[Note: this is a general poll - if you don't perfectly fit into a category, who does? Just pick the one that fits you best. And if you feel it doesn't say what you want about your habits - leave a response detailing them. It's no different than doing those quiz memes.]

Curious how others online get their books. I get mine by browsing in bookstores. I rarely if ever order books online - because getting deliveries is so problematic. And I like to check out the book first, see if it's something I want. I like to discover them in bookstores. Also don't like libraries - I love my books too hard partly and I don't like deadlines.
That's me. Curious to see how others operate.


[Poll #1023668]

Comments

[herself_nyc]

I read mostly literary fiction and some biography/nonfiction/memoir.

[cactuswatcher.livejournal.com]

The more I write fiction the less I tend to read it, so I'd actually choose history for my one genre.

I buy a lot of books I don't intend to keep, donating many to book fairs when I'm done. I keep mostly books I want to refer back to or re-read sometime.

[masqthephlsphr.livejournal.com]

Where I get my books really depends on what they are. In discovering new books, I usually find them in used bookstores (where they're cheap for the risk), or if they're recced from friends, I check them out at the library. I usually don't spend money on books or DVDs I have never read or viewed before (yeah, cheap here).

If I can't find them at the library and they've been recced, I sometimes will buy them. I buy books on line if I can get a good deal (taking into account shipping). I've gone to mainly on-line buying because living in SF, it's really difficult to get to the bookstore, and much more convenient to have it mailed to me at work.

[oursin.livejournal.com]

There is no one way that I select books: authors' track record, reviews, recs on my flist, browsing in bookshops, coming across mentions in other books... couldn't pick just one of those.

[cakmpls.livejournal.com]

I don't know whether polls can be edited, but if so, you might consider adding "Westerns" to the genre category.

[frenchani.livejournal.com]

I buy a lot of books but I also borrow some from friends and colleagues, especiallyt hose of the crime novel variety. Basically I like to own books even though the room is becoming an issue.

[midnightsjane.livejournal.com]

I buy a lot of books, and tend to keep them. My shelves are overloaded now, so I'm going to cull them..I did that awhile ago, and donated several bags of books to the patients' library at the hospital.
I love bookstores, can spend hours just browsing. I like to be able to thumb through a book before I buy it, so buying online isn't really for me.

[buffyannotater.livejournal.com]

I usually browse in the bookstore and purchase from Amazon, because of the discounts and no tax.

[herself_nyc]

Interesting that there are no library users so far. I was brought up on libraries, but now I'm in NYC where the libraries are always closed or chaotic, I can't be bothered anymore. Also can't be bothered to haul around hard cover books which is mostly what you find at the library.

[matociquala.livejournal.com]

I think this would have been more representative of my actual habits with ticky boxes, or less binary choices.

[embers-log.livejournal.com]

this is a fairly difficult poll... I get my books about equally from ordering online, buy at a store, borrowing from a library, AND loaners from friends...

And although I adore Mysteries (detective type) I hate suspense (for the most part) and I REALLY hate true crime!

It is always to just tick off one answer when everything is a sliding scale.

book lurve

[cynesthesia.livejournal.com]

Great idea for a poll.

I've been making increasing use of etexts found online at Project Gutenberg or through other sources. There's so much stuff in the public domain (published pre-1923) that I've yet to read and it's been great discovering some lesser-known works and writers that way. (Things like James Hogg's Private Confessions of a Justified Sinner which is my very favorite Gothic novel.) Took me quite a while to get used to reading a book on my computer, but I often convert it into a word document and have printed out very short works. This year I read nearly all Chekhov's mid-late short stories and novellas online and have nearly 200 public domain books downloaded onto my computer.

The simple truth is I've run out of room for books and I'm reluctant to get rid of them because so often things go out of print and are difficult to find again, even at my library which combines the city's collection and that of San Jose State. I still use the library particularly to check out new writers, but I've got a huge mound of unread books here at home I'm determined get through.

We're limited locally by what chains like B&N or Borders carry in their stores. If I want a proper bookstore where I can browse to my heart's content then I go to Santa Cruz or San Francisco where there are some terrific bookstores. I also order things online for reasons of price and selection, most of the time through Overstock.com since I got fed up with Amazon sending me damaged books that took forever to arrive. Overstock costs a bit less too.

[atpo-onm.livejournal.com]

Interesting... I was reading through the poll, substituting "movies/videos" for "books", and thinking about my answers.

Maybe for a future poll?